Stay in Spain, urge Catalonia ralliers

Secession foes put at 350,000-930,000

By Compiled by Democrat-Gazette staff from wire reports

Posted: October 9, 2017 at 3:52 a.m.Updated: October 9, 2017 at 3:52 a.m.

Credit: AP/FRANCISCO SECO
Demonstrators challenge Catalan regional police officers at the end of a march Sunday in downtown Barcelona, Spain, to protest the Catalan government’s push for secession from the rest of Spain.

BARCELONA, Spain -- Hundreds of thousands of people rallied Sunday in downtown Barcelona to protest against the plans of Catalonia's regional government to secede from the rest of Spain. The march was the largest pro-union showing since the rise of separatist sentiment in the prosperous northeastern region that has pushed Spain to the brink of a national crisis.

Nobel laureate Mario Vargas Llosa (center left) stands next to Popular Party leader in Catalonia Xavier Garcia Albiol (right) as they lead a march to ...

People carry a Spanish flag during a march in downtown Barcelona, Spain, to protest the Catalan government’s push for secession from Spain.